The Roses
by Mira Shio
Summary: A mysterious letter surprises Miaka upon returning home from school one day, but the surprise of having a gesture of love returned to her after many months was even greater. A Valentine's Day one-shot.


A/N: Hello to all my beloved readers and critics! I hereby present to you yet another part of my FY-fanfic line, _The Roses_. It's an adorable little semi-AU one-shot which I first wrote using the names of the English FY seiyuu (actually, this was originally homework, but let's not go there). With this story, I'm taking a short break from the deep and romantic fanfiction I usually write and settling for nice, warm fluff. And don't ask me why it's got AU tendencies, I just happen to like Tamahome more than his reincarnate--and yes, Nuriko's a girl here. It's the fourteenth of February, cut him some slack. Enjoy and Happy Valentine's Day!

**_Fushigi Yuugi: The Roses_**

It was a lazy afternoon. Fifteen-year-old Miaka Yuuki had just come home from school, tired and under pressure from the day's events. As she collapsed on the couch, her brother, Keisuke, joined her in the living room.

"Hey there, sis," said Keisuke. He pointed to the center table. "A letter arrived today for you."

"A letter?" repeated Miaka curiously. She snatched up the envelope on the table and carefully opened it. As she unfolded the letter inside, she gasped, saying, "It's from Tamahome!"

"Tamahome, huh?" said Keisuke, smirking to himself. Despite his sister's constant refrain of Tamahome merely being her best friend, he insisted that she had deeper feelings for him, and he would jump at any opportunity to tease her about it. "What did he say?"

"_'Dear Miaka, how have you been? It's been quite a while since we've seen each other'_"--Tamahome had moved to upstate Japan almost a year before--"_'and things haven't changed much over here--I'm still getting used to living in this part of the country. I miss being able to stay up late and stuff. But, of all things, I really miss everyone there, especially you. I've been able to adjust to some of the new stuff here, but I've never forgotten about you, or Hotohori or Nuriko. I always remember you guys, and I get moody on the best of days. It would be great to see the three of you again. Would it be possible for you to come visit me within the fortnight? I hope it's not too much of a bother to you, and I really hope to see you again. Sincerely, Tamahome'_." Miaka looked up, her cheeks illuminated by a bright pink tint. "He wants to see Hotohori and Nuriko and me!" She carefully folded the letter and tucked it back into the envelope. "Oh, it really has been a long time... I last visited him about ten months ago!"

"You do want to go see him, right?" grinned Keisuke.

"Of course," said Miaka.

Two weeks passed after the arrival of the letter. Miaka had written back, consenting to the mini-reunion with Hotohori and Nuriko. When the day arrived, Miaka woke up early, frantically pacing throughout the house and carefully getting prepared. Hotohori and Nuriko arrived an hour later, and they chattered merrily as Hotohori drove them up to Tamahome's house. It was noon when they arrived there.

"It is rather nice to be here," mused Hotohori once they stepped out of the car.

"I know," gushed Nuriko excitedly, her eyes scanning his entire house. "I love it here! It's gorgeous!"

Just then, Tamahome stepped out of the house, and he smiled warmly at Miaka, who smiled back. Miaka rather thought that he looked much taller--and more handsome--than when they had last met, which even though had only been a few months back, seemed like a long time ago. He met his best friends at the gate.

"It's good to see you guys!" he said as he embraced each of them. "How was the trip here?"

"It was fine, thank you," said Hotohori.

"Your garden looks great!" said Nuriko, her eyes passing over the garden in front of the house. "Did your folks have it landscaped?"

"Most of it, yeah," said Tamahome. "But that one"--he pointed to a single rose bush by the porch--"was planted by Miaka when she came here a while back."

Miaka's face lit up; the bush of pristine red roses had flourished much since she had last seen it. "Really? That's the one I--?"

"None other," said Tamahome. "Our neighbors always beg us to let them pick some, but I never let anyone touch it. Well, enough about that... come on in!"

The four friends gaily chatted for the rest of the day, reminiscing and updating each other on their lives. Miaka found that she was the most enthusiastic one there--which was saying something, as they all gleefully took part in this reunion--and that she could feel an inexplicable pang as time wore on. She felt as though the ten months that had passed since her last visit was far too long ago, like she missed Tamahome far more than she thought she should.

Much to everyone's dismay, however, the day seemed to end far too quickly. After dinner, Miaka, Nuriko and Hotohori went to make their way home--but not before a last surprise came Miaka's way.

"Miaka, can I talk to you for a minute?" Tamahome told her before leading all three of his friends out of the house.

"Sure," said Miaka, her cheeks turning a faint red.

At this point, Nuriko seemed to bellow out, "Time to warm up the car, Hotohori, it's gonna take a while!"

Nuriko and Hotohori quickly stepped out of the house as the former slipped Miaka a wink, and Tamahome left her in the living room as he went to get something. When he got back, he was holding a bouquet of red roses.

"I want you to have this," said he as he presented it to Miaka.

Miaka was flattered by the gesture, and she gladly took the flowers in her arms. "Thank you so much, Tamahome! What's gotten into you?"

He merely shrugged. "You said you planted the rose bush as a token of our friendship, so I thought that this would be the best way to repay the favor."

As Tamahome finished speaking, Miaka's blush had deepened and her smile had grown wider. "Oh... thank you. Good night, Tamahome."

"Good night too," he replied, swiftly giving her a kiss on the cheek.

He led her to the car, where Hotohori and Nuriko sat waiting for Miaka. They bade him goodbye with the promise of returning soon, and all throughout the trip Nuriko could not restrain herself from teasing Miaka over the bouquet she carried gently against her chest. Despite the fierce retorts of denial she threw back to her friend, Miaka was infinitely glad. It was much more than she had bargained for.


End file.
